By : Divyanshi Rai
Introduction:
Jammu and Kashmir considered as the heaven on earth, has been a part of India from1954 to 2019. The south-eastern part or considerably the larger part of the state is one of the reasons of dispute between India, Pakistan and China since the mid-20th century. The underlying region of this state were parts of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, whose western districts, now known as Azad Kashmir, and northern territories, now known as Gilgit-Baltistan, are administered by Pakistan. The Aksai Chin region in the east, bordering Tibet, has been under Chinese control since 1962.
The Government of India in 2019 repealed the special status of Jammu and Kashmir provided under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution. The Parliament passed the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act which dissolves the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories i.e., Jammu Kashmir in west and Ladakh in east, The Act came into force on 31st October 2019.
Article 370 was drafted in Part XXI of the Indian constitution titled "Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions". It stated that the Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir would be empowered to recommend the extent to which the Indian constitution would apply to the state. The state assembly could also abrogate the Article 370 altogether, in which case all of Indian Constitution would have applied to the state. The chief drafter of the article was N. Gopalaswami Ayyanger.2
JAMMU AND KASHMIR REORGANISATION ACT,20193:
The bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha by Amit Shah, Minister of Home Affairs on the 5th August, 2019 and was passed by the Lok Sabha on 6th August,2019.The bill got President’s assent on the 9th August 2019 and was executed on 31st October 2019.The act has 103 sections divided into 14 parts and 5 schedules.
The act bifurcates the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories i.e., union territory of J&K and union territory of Ladakh.
Part I of the act talks about the definitions of the titles or terminologies used in the act.
Under Section 3 of the second part of the act UT of Ladakh is formed which comprises of the districts of Kargil and Leh. Section 4 of this part the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir is formed and comprises of erstwhile districts except the districts of Kargil and Leh.
Under Section 9 (1) of Part III of the act hour seats are allocated to the UT of J&K in the Rajya Sabha.
Under Section 10 of this part of the act five seats are allocated to the UT of Jammu and Kashmir and one seat to the UT of Ladakh. Section 13 of the article also mentions that provisions of Article 239(A) are applicable to the UT of Jammu and Kashmir. Under Section 14(1) the appointment of Administrator will be made under Article 239(A) and will be designated as the Lieutenant Governor. Section 14(2) UT of Jammu and Kashmir with Legislative assembly only. The total number of seats in the legislative assembly of UT of J&K is 107 (Section14(3)).
Section 14(4)(a) states that 24 seats remain vacant for Pakistan occupied Kashmir (POK). Reservation of seats of SCs and STs in the legislative assembly of J&K is provided under Section 16. Seats to be reserved in accordance to their population.
Section 17 states the duration of the legislative assembly of the UT i.e., 5 years from the date of first meeting. Section17(1) states that the term of legislative assembly can be increased during National Emergency.
Section 22 talks about right of Minister and Advocate General to speak and participate in the proceeding of the legislative assembly. Disqualification of membership from the legislative assembly is talked about in Section 27. The anti-deflection law has been dealt in section 28 of part III.
The rule making authority provided to the legislation is mentioned under Section32(1). It states that – Power of legislative assembly to make laws on any subject mentioned in the state list in seventh schedule except entries 1 and 2 namely “Public Order” and “Police”. The budget and financial status of the is mentioned under Section 41(1).
The ordinance making power the Lieutenant Governor has been dealt under Section 52 (1). The Chief Minister of the territory shall be appointed by the Lieutenant Governor of the UT (Section 54(1)). Section 57 deals with the abolition of the legislative assembly and the aftermath.
- Section 73 of the Part VII deals with the Presidential Rule (failure of constitutional machinery).
- Section 75(1)(a) of Part VIII states that the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir is common for the both the Ut of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
- Section 79(1) of Part IX talks about the minimum qualification for judge of J&K High Court and Section 79(2) talks about appointment of Advocate General of the UT of Jammu and Kashmir.
- Section 85(1) of Part XII of the act deals with the establishment of Advisory Committees by the Central Government.
The First Schedule deals with members of Council of State.
The Second Schedule deals with the Parliamentary Constituencies of UT of Jammu and Kashmir:
1. Baramulla- Baramulla District
2. Srinagar- Srinagar District
3. Anantnag- Anantnag District
4. Udhampur-Udhampur, Doda and Kathua
5. Jammu- Jammu, Rajouri and Poonch.
It also deals with the Parliamentary Constituency of UT of Ladakh District.
The Third Schedule deals with assembly constituency of UT of Jammu and Kashmir and UT of Ladakh.
The Fourth Schedule deals with Oaths and Affirmations.
The Fifth Schedule deals with the Central Laws that are applicable in UT of Jammu and Kashmir and UT of Ladakh. 106 central laws are applicable to the UT of J&K to name a few, The Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, The Right to Information Act, 2005, The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act,2007, National Security Act, 1980, The Muslim Personal Law (Shariyat) Act,1937, The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986, The National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992, The Indian Penal Code, 1860, The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, The Aadhar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other subsidies, benefits and services) Act, 2016.
166 state law will remain in force and 153 state laws and 11 governor acts are repealed.
CONCLUSION:
The Constitution of India under Article 370 provided a special status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir which was drafted by N. Gopalaswami Ayyanger. GOI in the year 2019 repealed Article 370 and thus abolished the special status provided to J&K. The bill was introduced on 5th August and was passed on the same day by upper house of the parliament. It was passed by the lower house on the very next and received President’s assent on 9th August 2019 and came into force on 31st October 2019. The act consisted of 103 sections divided into 14 parts and has 5 schedules. The division may also lead to a proper development of Ladakh which lacks many facilities.
So, all in all, the act by abolishing the special status of Jammu and Kashmir makes it a part of India in true sense and by all means.
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